


Wrong Man for the Job

by SingingInTheRaiin



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Dark Morgana (Merlin), Gen, M/M, and he never went to camelot to become arthur's manservant, can't fight your destiny babey, canon setting but merlin is older
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:16:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27658724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SingingInTheRaiin/pseuds/SingingInTheRaiin
Summary: The infamous Emrys is hired to assassinate Prince Arthur. Somehow Morgana failed to foresee that this would have a happy ending for those two.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 183





	Wrong Man for the Job

When someone came knocking on his door asking after Emrys, Merlin just knew that it wasn’t going to end well. He’d been in retirement for a few years now, and would’ve been content if no one had ever come looking for him again. But he wasn’t foolish enough to immediately turn away someone who knew who he was, because magic was a dangerous commodity to be accused of having. So he opened the door and let the two people come in.

The taller of the two pulled their hood back, revealing a very beautiful woman with a harshness to her eyes that didn’t suit her face. “Your home is very… quaint.”

Merlin waved his hand, and the kettle rose up to pour out three cups of tea. “I’m assuming you didn’t come here for decor tips?”

She tilted her head in acknowledgement. “I came because I am in need of your services. You are a very difficult man to track down, Emrys, but now that I’m here, I’m hoping you can help me.”

Merlin narrowed his eyes as he looked at her carefully. “I can tell that you’re quite powerful in your own right. What could you possibly need me for?”

The woman sighed before reaching into her sleeve and pulling out a folded up piece of parchment. “My target is too high profile, and I can’t get close enough to get the job done.”

She offered out the paper, so Merlin took it and slowly unfolded it, revealing a sketch of a handsome looking man. “Arthur Pendragon?” Realization washed over him, and he looked back at the woman. “You’re Morgana Pen-”

“Just Morgana,” she interrupted in a low voice. “Yes.” From everything Merlin had heard (which admittedly wasn’t very much, given how far he lived from most other people), Morgana was Uther Pendragon’s ward, raised like a sister to the prince. And now she wanted him dead. Well, Merlin did know a thing or two about dysfunctional families, so perhaps he shouldn’t be too surprised. “So will you do it or not?” Morgana asked demandingly when the silence went on for a few seconds too long.

Merlin let out a long sigh, then shook his head. “No. If you put in all this effort to find me, then surely you also figured out my rules.”

“He is a threat to magic everywhere! Uther’s dying and will fade from this world soon enough, leaving Arthur to be crowned king unless something’s done to stop him. He’s exactly like his father, and the war on magic will not end under his reign. Something needs to be done to stop him now, before he can destroy everything!” She paused to take a few deep breaths and calm herself a little before continuing. “I can reward you handsomely if you do this. I know you have no need of money, so I brought this.” She pulled out a small velvet pouch, and carefully tipped the contents out onto her palm, revealing a glimmering red gem that Merlin could immediately sense was magic. “Surely even the great and powerful Emrys is interested in knowing who his soulmate is?”

He could get into an argument about how soulmates weren’t even a thing, but it didn’t seem like that was the type of thing that would put Morgana off. “Who’s to say I don’t already know?” he asked instead. Morgana just snorted and pointedly looked around the small home that clearly only had one occupant. 

As much as he hated to admit it, sometimes Merlin did get lonely out here all on his own. But it was hard to believe that his destiny was to ever find someone who would love and accept him for who he was. And wouldn’t that just be a cruelty to the other person, anyways? Merlin was already well aware that he had much more than a simple human life span awaiting him. 

Still, he couldn’t deny that he was at least a little curious to know what destiny had in mind for him. “How does it work?”

Morgana gave him a smug little smile before answering. “You just hold it tightly in your hand and it will show you visions of your future love.” So not actually soulmates then, just as he’d thought. If he had no romance in his future, then the stone would be worthless to him. But it was an interesting offer, and he hadn’t gotten the chance to test his skills in many years, so after a long moment of hesitation, he decided to go for it.

Things moved along quickly after that. He made a magical vow with Morgana, she gave him the stone, and then her and her companion left. Merlin stared down at the little pouch, then shoved it to the bottom of his pocket. It’s not that he was scared or anything… he just thought it would be easier to look at it later so that he wouldn’t be distracted while killing Prince Arthur. That’s all it was, really.

,,,

Arthur stood on the balcony, staring out over the city. There were still a few candles shining from the windows of some buildings, and the street lights hadn’t yet flickered out for the night, but it was quiet and peaceful. Looking out at Camelot, it was hard to believe that there could be so much turmoil going on inside the castle; inside Arthur’s heart. 

His father had been poisoned, and no one knew of any cure for it. Arthur would even be willing to give magic a chance if it could just save his father’s life, but he’d not heard any responses back to the subtle word he’d put out. Probably because any potential sorcerers who’d heard it assumed that it was a trap to catch them. And Arthur couldn’t even blame them for thinking that, considering how they’d been treated for as long as he could remember. 

Arthur was interrupted from his musings by the sound of softly clanking armor approaching, and then the clearing of a throat. He turned to look at Leon with one eyebrow raised, and the knight bowed his head. “Sire, there is a man here to see you. He claims that it is urgent, and that- that he can heal the king.”

Arthur’s eyes widened, and he quickly stepped away from the balcony wall. “Show me to him!”

Leon sighed. “Sire, this could very well be some kind of scam-”

“I don’t care,” Arthur interrupted. “If there’s even a chance, then I have to take it.”

Leon nodded, not meeting Arthur’s eyes. “Very well, Sire.” Then he led Arthur through the castle and to the throne room. Gaius was waiting there, along with another old man. Arthur didn’t bother sitting down, and walked right up to the stranger. He was distracted for a moment by just how piercing those blue eyes were, but then quickly brought his thoughts back to the urgency of the situation. 

“Can you heal my father? The method doesn’t concern me, so long as it can be done,” he said bluntly.

The old man raised one eyebrow, which just seemed to somehow make more wrinkles spread across his face. “There are very few things that can not be cured, aside from death. The real question is, however, what would Uther Pendragon think of this? He’s never exactly been subtle in his views.”

“I swear on my life that no harm will come to you, if you just try to heal him. Surely you didn’t come all the way here just to turn me down?” He knew that he sounded desperate, but that’s because he was. He wasn’t ready to be king yet, but more importantly, he wasn’t nearly ready to bury his father.

Several very long seconds seemed to pass before the old man finally relented. “I will do everything in my power to heal him… on one condition.”

“Anything!”

The old man frowned at Arthur’s eagerness before he continued. “The laws against magic in this kingdom must be removed.”

Okay, so Arthur should’ve seen that one coming. And he’d be more than happy to agree, because like he said, he’d do anything to help his father. Not to mention the fact that he’d seen plenty of cases of people with magic who were innocent of any crimes, just as there were plenty of evil men who never used it. The problem was, though, that if Uther was saved, there’s no way he’d ever agree to remove the ban, even if magic was the very thing that had saved his life.

The old man clearly sensed Arthur’s hesitation. “I see. So it’s alright to use magic in secret if it is for you, but not to admit that magic is not evil? Pah, I should’ve known you’d be a hypocrite just like your father.” 

He turned to march away, but Arthur reached out without even thinking, grabbing the man’s arm. “Wait- that’s not what I-” Something dropped out of the man’s sleeve and landed on the ground with a soft clatter. Arthur frowned before bending over to pick it up. A red stone that had partially fallen out of a little pouch. “What’s-”

“Give that back!” the man snapped before snatching the stone out of Arthur’s hand. Then the man’s eyes widened, and he stared at Arthur in surprise. “No way…”

,,,

Merlin had just been messing around with his target, since in the end it would be easiest if he got the prince somewhere alone, like the king’s deathbed. He wasn’t actually going to leave before fulfilling his end of the deal. But the moment he’d held tightly onto the gem Morgana gave him, Merlin saw a few glimpses of his future. And all of them showed Arthur- smiling, laughing, teasing, insisting he wasn’t tired even as he nodded off to bed, grabbing Merlin’s hand and tugging him away to hide from a council meeting, humbly putting up with the teasing of his knights about his relationship.

It was all so much, and yet Merlin saw it all within the span of just a few seconds. He didn’t even know what to do. He never thought he’d find anyone, and yet… now his future showed him with Arthur Pendragon of all people. “Take me to see your father,” he grumbled. He needed to buy time for himself while he figured out what the hell to do with all of that. 

He was silent other than dismissing everyone but Arthur from the room. In those scenes he’d glimpsed, Arthur had looked so happy, and so did Merlin. It was hard to imagine he could ever be that content, considering everything else that had happened in his life. And yet… He glanced over at Arthur, who was sitting anxiously next to his father’s bed, gently holding one of Uther’s hands. There was something about Arthur that was different. Merlin had only known him for a few minutes, but he could already tell. 

As a distraction for himself, Merlin let his magic sweep over Uther’s body, checking for the problem. He frowned as he realized what was going on. “How much would your opinion on magic change if it was used to end your father’s life?” he asked softly.

Arthur immediately surged to his feet and drew his sword. “Don’t even think about it,” he growled.

Merlin sighed and shook his head. “Not me, clotpole.” Arthur frowned slightly at the word but didn’t interrupt. “There’s some kind of charmed item in this room. If anyone uses magic of any type to heal the king, his condition will immediately worsen to kill him. If someone knew that you would be willing to give magic a chance, but was hoping to turn you against it, this would be a prime opportunity.”

Arthur scowled. “How do I know you’re not just lying so that you don’t have to help him?”

Merlin hesitated for a moment to think. He had more than enough power to get away in an instant if he had to escape, so really, what harm would it do to gauge Arthur’s reaction? He tossed Morgana’s stone over to Arthur. “This tells the future.”

While Arthur was distracted with that, Merlin took the opportunity to search the room. He ignored the confused noises Arthur was making, and let out a triumphant, “A-ha!” as he pulled a necklace out from where it had been tucked under Uther’s pillow. He crushed the necklace in his bare hand, and watched the shards sprinkle down to the floor. Then he focused back on Uther.

He started to reach out to touch the dying man, but then paused and looked at Arthur, who seemed somewhat dazed. “Will you swear to repeal the ban if I do this?”

Arthur blinked a few times, looking back and forth between the stone and Merlin. “Does this really tell the future?” Merlin nodded in bemusement, and Arthur gulped once. “Then, if I am to have a court sorcerer someday, I must do as you say. Heal my father, and I will work on reversing the laws against magic immediately, you have my word. To be honest, I- I had been considering such a thing for quite a while now, but there’s never been a chance for me to… well. So does this mean that you can heal him?”

It was clear that Arthur was a good man, and Merlin couldn’t imagine being with someone who was so good. But the world needed more good men in it, and Merlin could already picture how much the kingdom would thrive when Arthur was there to rule it someday. So he took a deep breath, nodded once, and let his eyes flash golden as he performed a fairly basic healing spell.

Once he was done, Uther let out a soft groan, then opened his eyes. Arthur gasped and hurried to his father’s side. “Father!” 

Merlin left the room to give them some privacy. Then after another moment of thought, teleported back to his house. He transformed back into his usual self, and started packing his things. He got the feeling that Camelot was about to become a very interesting place to be, and Merlin could do with some excitement in his life. And perhaps even a little bit of romance as well? 

And there was no risk of being harmed by his vow with Morgana, because he did intend to kill Arthur someday. The promise had never clarified any sort of time table for it.

,,,

It was many years later, when Arthur was an old and frail man, that Merlin prepared to fulfill the promise he’d made so long ago. He gently whispered the spell that would stop Arthur’s heart, and he felt as the chains of the promise faded away from him. 

Then just a few hours later, Arthur emerged from his bed, looking as young and healthy as he had when they’d first met. “So I’m really immortal now?” he asked, looking over his body like it was a brand new thing to him. 

Merlin nodded. “Yup. It’s too late to take it back, so now you’re stuck with me forever.”

“Don’t be an idiot,  _ Mer _ lin. I wouldn’t have asked for this if it wasn’t what I wanted.” With that, Merlin shed the illusion of old age that he had been wearing for so long, and reached out to hold Arthur’s hand. Arthur grinned at him, and Merlin felt a sense of deja vous for a moment, until he realized that he had seen this before, back when he’d gotten a glimpse of this happily ever after of his. 


End file.
